


The Way To A New Beginning

by MsJackofAllFandoms



Category: Falling Skies
Genre: F/M, Fix It Fic, Hurt/Comfort, Slash if you squint, The dornia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-12-24 06:29:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12007008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsJackofAllFandoms/pseuds/MsJackofAllFandoms
Summary: The ending of Series 5 annoyed me, so I "fixed it" a bit.John Pope did not die on that beach. He wasn't blown up under rubble and he did not get revenge on Tom's bad decision by going off on a rampage, because Sara did not die when she was trapped by alien cement.So this is how the beach scene would have gone, if the events that led up to them hadn't have happened.





	The Way To A New Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This has been stewing inside of me for many, many months. 
> 
> Not beta'd, if you spot any mistakes please feel free to comment and correct me on any mistakes I have made.
> 
> Enjoy

When he turned around at the noise and saw the grieving, broken man covereerd in blood standing before him, carrying the dead Sara in his arms, Tom knew what he needed to do.

 

“You always get what you want, Mason” Pope shouted at him and trusted the dead woman at him, “but what do I get? You talk about sacrifices and risks for the war, but did _this_ one achieve, Mason?”

Tom breathed in calmly and gestured to Sara. “Bring her to me, here, I think I can fix this."

Pope seemed to ignore him and carried on talking. "She just wanted to survive! She was scared and alone, and she might be alive if she hadn't have come with me!". His words sounded as broken as his heart was.

Tom couldn't do anything but plead and repeat himself. "I know. But she might have died sooner without you. Please, Pope, bring her hear. Come and stand in the water, next to me."

A part of Tom did not expect him to follow the request, but he did. Pope walked towards him.

"What is this, burial at sea?" Pope looked at him in the face, "I don't suppose I've got long left either".

It was the first time Tom really noticed how serious Pope's injuries were.

"You will. You will, Pope, but you have to trust me."

Pope carried on walking forward but nevertheless he scoffed. "Trusting you's what got me into this mess in the first place."

Tom signed, he knew he deserved that. "Yeah. I can't deny that."

Finally Pope was stood next to him, shin-deep in water.

"Make it quick". Pope said, looking straight ahead.

Tom shook his head. "I'm not going to kill you John. We're going to place Sara in the water, and you're going to stand next to her, and I'm going to see what I can do."

Pope scoffed again. "See what you can do?" Tom didn't respond, he didn't want to get anybody's hopes up. Pope spoke again, "Why?"

"I don't want to say anything yet, but just, maybe for the last time, trust me."

Pope sighed resignedly, "I'm doing this because I don't have any other options, not because I trust you." And he gently placed Sara in the water.

Tom watched as Sara's body half submerged in the water. She looked peaceful, and it made Tom more determined than ever to fix this. He turned to face the ocean, just as he had before.

"I knew we had a deal, and you've already fulfilled your part of it, but I am begging you on behalf of this man here, to save Sara. I don't know what you're doing with Anne, but I know you're saving her like you did me, so save Sara too. We've been over this, You saved me to help you, I did what you asked, Anne did what she needed to do, but we wouldn't have got this far without this man, what he did in the ghetto, and this man deserves to live just like I am, and he loves Sara, so help her too. It wouldn't be right for me to get everything I want whilst he suffers and dies. John Pope does not go out that way! That is not how our new world will start!"

Pope looked up at the sky and around him, and Tom could tell he thought he was crazy.

"Mason, who the hell are you talking to?"

"The Dornia", he explained without further elaboration, "now shut up".

"I could continue to beg" Tom continued to address the air, hoping they were listening, "but I know you'll do just what you want to do, just like you have every step of the way. I could continue to plead if I thought it made my case any stronger than it already is. You have studied us, you knew how to manipulate us, well study this. Learn this. Learn this man's pain and his grief. What sort of new life can we humans start if the people we want to start with died at the at the very last second, with a new start within reach. It's cruel."

Suddenly John fell into the water. Tom rushed back to his side.

"We have hated each other from the day we met", he continued, whilst supporting Pope's body, "He's been a thorn in my side for over 5 years now, but damn if I wouldn't miss him. It's complicated, I can't explain, but that's human, and that is why we fought! To continue being human! This is what the war was for and you know that! So help him _and_ save Sara!"

 

The water bubbled up much like it had when they took Anne. Mechanical tentacles broke through to the surface and, like they did with Anne, surrounded her and took her.

 

"No! Where-" John tried to grab for her, but Tom pulled his arm back. "What is that? What’s taking her?"

"It's alright", Tom tried to reassure him, "It's what's meant to happen. They're fixing this. It'll be okay."

"But I-" John started, then cut off with a groan. He folded in to himself and if Tom hadn't have been by his side, he'd have landed face first in the water.

Tom panicked, thinking that maybe the Dornia had a twisted idea of help, or were maybe only half ful-filling his demand, and that maybe John was finally succumbing to his injuries. But he looked closer at Pope's face. The superficial cuts were disappearing, and the blood that had been dripping in to water from a deep wound on the other man's body were slowing down and lightening in colour.

Pope groaned again, "I don't know what they’re doing but this burns like a bitch".

Tom laughed humourlessly. "Well, like my mom used to say, that means it's working."

John glared at hi, "Well your Mom can go-" Before he could finish his crude reply, he groaned in pain again. Tom waited for what he assumed to be a spasm to pass.

"That's what you get for being rude about my Mom."

John opened one eye at him, "Oh shut it."

Time passed by as Tom and Pope waited for the pain and spasm to ease, but eventually the burning faded and the spasms stopped.

 

A disembodied voice addressed them from above.

_"It is easier to rebuild humanity than to heal it from within. We are sorry it caused you pain, but you are healed now."_

Pope stood up and Tom, confident at the Dornia's capabilities that the other man would stand unsupported, separated from him. Pope couldn't beieve that only an hour before, he had been close to death and knew it was like he'd never been hurt in alien crossfire at all, let alone at the monument.

He was about to say something sardonic, but he caught sight of Tom's face and followed the direction he was looking in. Water was rippling, a casm in the waves was opening up, and Anne was walking up through it.

Whatever he was going to say died on his tongue, as the sight took his breath away. It took's Tom's breath away as well. Anne was alive and she looked as perfect as the day he met her.

Anne walked up to Tom, and it was like she also had never been in an alien war either.

Tom wrapped his arms around her. He had Anne back, and he had never before been so greatful for the Dornia for how wonderful it felt.

They spoke quietly between themselves, Tom was very aware that Pope was not only standing there watching them, but watching them alone waiting for Sara to make a similar miraculous return.

"I'm so glad to see you." He whispered

"I didn't even know I'd gone".

 

"I'll just be over there" Pope shouted as he turned gingerly and started treading up the sand bank.

"No!" Anne shouted, "You need to stay here and wait".

Tom didn't want to get his hopes up on Pope's behalf, but he had Anne back, so for the first time since he saw Pope and Sara, he started to feel hope.

All three looked out to the ea, and waited.

It was close to another hour and Pope had started to feel every minute with wet clothes and an afternoon chill setting in in the air, whe the ripples that had made way for Anne, formed on the sea once again.

They all held their breath.

 

Slowly but surely, Sara was revealed, looking unharmed, and perfectly fine, just like Anne and Tom, and Pope himself was.

Tom was, amongst a lot of other emotions, was releved that it had worked out for once. If he'd been greatful for the healing of Pope and return of Anne, he felt something ten times more for the return of Sara.

Sara looked confused, but Pope's face was lit up in a way Tom had never seen before. As if he'd been in the dark for a long time and was finally standing under the sunshine again.

"that’s what life and hope was meant to look like", Tom thought to himself. "Thank you", he whispered to the Dornia.

As he took in the other couple's love for each other, grattitude that they had each other once again, Tom knew that new life without them would have been wrong.

They all walked back together.

Just as it should be.


End file.
